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23 Feb 2013

Yekaterinburg: & the Romanov Memorial

We had been forewarned by internet reviews that our hostel - *Allis Hall Hostel* - would be difficult to find, but that was an understatement. Tucked around the back of a row of shops and office blocks, its metal door had nothing to distinguish it from all the others. After randomly pushing doorbells to no avail, we finally found one door slightly ajar. Communal stairwells in Russia tend to have a bucket serving as an ashtray on every few landings, and this one was no exception. The result is a lingering smell of cigarette smoke. But once inside the hostel we had a very warm welcome, and the room was large and bright. So after a quick rest and wash, we set about seeing the sights.

Day No.

Day

Date

Countries travelled

Country

City

City

Trans-port

kms travelled

kms total

Hours travelled

Night accommodation

9

Thur

21/02/2013

0

Russia

1

Yekaterinburg

-

0

5424

0

Allis Hall Hostel

10

Fri

22/02/2013

0

Russia

0

Travel

-

0

5424

0

Train

11

Sat

23/02/2013

0

Russia

0

Travel

Train - 2nd class

2282

7706

37

Train

First stop was the Pokrovsky House Museum, Pokrovsky was a
wealthy Yekaterinburg business man who set up a lot of industry including
providing jobs in a new local copper mine in the 1700’s and he also did a lot
of charity work to the benefit of many locals.
It was interesting but not as informative as we had hoped. So then on to the Regional History Museum, which looked brand new and heavily
invested in, giving us high hoped for our 200 rouble tickets (expensive by
Russian standards). As Yekaterinburg is
most famous for being the setting of the execution of Russia’s last Tsar
Nicolas II and his family in 1918, we were expecting that to be a key
feature. The museum itself was rather
disappointing, being an uninspiring celebration of Yekaterinburg’s industrial
achievements, past and present. It
seemed to be more of a marketing exercise for local investment than anything
else. There is certainly evidence of a
lot of construction activity going on across the city.

But later that afternoon we visited
the excellent RomanovMemorial Museum and Church of the Blood dedicated to Tsar
Nicolas II and his family who were all canonised by the Russian Orthodox Church
in 2003. Being the only visitors there,
we were given a private guided tour in English, learning a lot about the
build-up to the revolution, and the final months of the Tsar. With the feel of being a shrine to Nicolas II
as much as a museum, it’s a rather biased take on his life and views, but an
excellent insight none the less. One of
the highlights was being invited to sit at the Tsars Grand Piano, which had
been perfectly restored.

Walking the city, this was also the first time that we saw some really nice examples of the traditional Wooden Architecture and detailed lattice work that typified 18 Century architecture. We also enjoyed the Ice Sculptures
and watching people taking shortcuts across the river of the city - only a small measure of what was to come on Lake Baikal!

The next day we went to the Military Museum, which houses a great
tour-de-force of Russian military might.
Yet again, we had the place to ourselves until a Russian General arrived
and introduced himself (complete with Vodka breath!), followed by a group of fresh
faced army cadets who, in their oversized trench coats, looked harmless enough,
and like toy soldiers.

On route to the train station we had
dinner at another excellent Ukrainian restaurant called *Xytopok* - dumplings,
borscht and meat & tongue sausage – a traditional selection.

Then on to the train for another 37
hour stint to Krasnoyarsk. This time
splashing out on a 2nd Class (4 berth) carriage.

Fortunately we were sharing with a very nice
English speaking Russian Geophysicist (Paul) who had been visiting his mother for the weekend
and was also on his way home to Krasnoyarsk.
He shows us photos of his “datcha”
(Russian summer house), complete with Banya (Russian Steam Room/Sauna). Due to his love of animated cinema (showing
us a funny Russian short animated clip) and uncanny resemblance, we nickname
him Mr. Fredricksen from “Up” (a film which he says he also loves). Unfortunately the carriage attendant is as
surly as ever, throwing our bedding at us, but even she mellows as the miles
roll by…